This is the tale that began in 2006 in my first year of beekeeping in Atlanta, GA. ...there's still so much to learn.

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I've been keeping this blog for all of my beekeeping years and I began my 12th year of beekeeping in April 2017. Now there are almost 1300posts on this blog. Please use the search bar below to search the blog for other posts on a subject in which you are interested. You can also click on the "label" at the end of a post and all posts with that label will show up. At the very bottom of this page is a list of all the labels I've used.

Even if you find one post on the subject, I've posted a lot on basic beekeeping skills like installing bees, harvesting honey, inspecting the hive, etc. so be sure to search for more once you've found a topic of interest to you. And watch the useful videos and slide showson the sidebar. All of them have captions. Please share posts of interest via Facebook, Pinterest, etc.

I began this blog to chronicle my beekeeping experiences. I have read lots of beekeeping books, but nothing takes the place of either hands-on experience with an experienced beekeeper or good pictures of the process. I want people to have a clearer picture of what to expect in their beekeeping so I post pictures and write about my beekeeping saga here. Along the way, I've passed a number of certification levels and am now a Master Beekeeper Enjoy with me as I learn and grow as a beekeeper.

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Tuesday, June 01, 2010

Making Creamed Honey

One of my favorite talks at Young Harris was a demonstration by Keith and Rosanne Fielder on how to make creamed honey. I had some honey in Atlanta that had crystallized over the winter, so I couldn't wait to get home to try doing this myself.

Keith said that the honey judge looks for two things in tasting creamed honey: they push the honey against the roof of their mouth with their tongue and do not want to feel any crystals. Also they push the honey between their upper and lower front teeth with the same goal: not to feel any crystals. Keith had some of his own creamed honey there for us to taste - as always, he is super at it - I don't think mine will ever taste as good as his did.

To make creamed honey by the Dyce method, first you need a "seed" honey. This would be a honey that is creamed that you buy or have saved from a previous batch of your own. I bought some German creamed honey at Whole Foods that is smooth (like the judges want) and tastes really good. I also like the taste of my crystallizing honey - it's a little sharp as my mid summer honeys tend to be, probably informed by tulip poplar.

Keith said that we could flavor the honey with flavoring oils but I like honey to taste like honey so I didn't do that. He said that cinnamon is a popular flavor with his customers.

Creamed honey is supposed to be jarred in clear, straight-sided jars with solid tops (not two piece canning tops). I had none of these and spent a whopping $2.50 per jar to buy some at the Container store.

Here are pictures of the process - the captions give you the directions (click on the little quotation symbol on the lower left to see the captions).

I did the Master Beekeeper class at Young Harris Beekeeping Institute which is run by UGA and Young Harris College - it serves GA, AL, TN and NC. EAS also offers a Master Beekeeper class in August in Boone, NC

Linda it has been very interesting seeing your photos of the process. After you finished making it did you have to control the temperature it was left in to 55F until it had recrystallised into creamed honey or did it work without worrying about temperature?

I just put it in the refrigerator and left it there. It took about six weeks to complete the process of crystallization. Mostly after that I left it in the fridge, but it will remain crystallized without the refrigeration once the process is complete. Under HOT conditions, the honey can re-liquify.

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Linda in her beesuit

Atlanta Beekeeping Meetup Group

7 PM on the third Tuesday of the month at the First Baptist Church of Sandy Springs (650 Mount Vernon Highway NE, Sandy Springs, GA). Want to talk bees with like-minded beekeepers who want to discuss things about bees?

Join us for interesting discussions about keeping bees in the many ways that people do. Click here to find our Meetup group page.

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Great Quote from Richard Taylor, beekeeper and writer

"There are a few rules of thumb that are useful guides. One is that when you are confronted with some problem in the apiary and you do not know what to do, then do nothing. Matters are seldom made worse by doing nothing and are often made much worse by inept intervention." --The How-To-Do-It book of Beekeeping, Richard Taylor

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Thanks for visiting my blog and following my beekeeping adventure!

This site is listed on many websites across the country as a good site for beginners to visit. Blogger tells me that there are over 1300 posts on this blog for you to explore. There are slide shows and videos on the sidebar addressing beekeeping challenges like harvesting, solar wax melters, and doing hive inspections.

I may have already addressed a bee issue which is on your mind. The search feature will send you to the most recent post on a subject. Be sure to keep looking because I've posted a lot on many issues. Use the Google search feature on this page will help you search this site to find posts dealing with your question.

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